Darren Elkins motivated to keep improving, aiming to reclaim top 15

Darren Elkins Has battled with who is who throughout his career, but still has a desire to continue to grow.

Elkins (25-9 MMA, 15-8 UFC) was able to win a four-loss skateboard with a much-needed win over Eduardo Garagorri in November and looks set to continue the momentum when he meets Darrick Minner ( 26-11 MMA, 2-1 UFC) at UFC on ESPN 27 on Saturday.

At one point, Elkins had one of the most impressive fights in the tournament, until he faced reigning UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski. So with a new wave of talent arriving for £145, the 37-year-old knows he has to keep improving or he will be left behind.

“I just love competing,” Elkins told MMA Junkie. “At the end of the day, I’m doing what I love to do. I have other jobs that I can do, I’m a union plumber so I have other things, other careers I can get into, but I just love the fighting lifestyle. I like the coaching part of it, and I want to see how I play against these guys. So I wake up every day, and I know these people are improving so I have to improve too.

“I had to change some of my training tactics and keep trying to get better. That also motivates me because you watch the game from 11 years ago when I first joined, it’s completely different. These guys are better athletes, there’s more science behind so I just try to get into science as much as I can. “

With a win over submission expert Minner, Elkins is aiming to rebuild the momentum he had as a longtime contender against the elite.

“There’s a lot of new guys, it’s exciting,” Elkins said. “All the newcomers in the top 10, top 15, and I’m just trying to work my way back up there. I still have some time to get there, but I just want to be back in the top 15 and whoever gets me there, that’s what I want to do. “